MPs have warned that proposed reforms to the special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) system leave critical questions unanswered regarding home-to-school transport and council deficits. The Public Accounts Committee (PAC) has urged the government to clarify how it plans to support councils facing ongoing SEND deficits and the high costs of transporting children to school.
The reforms, unveiled by ministers, aim to make the system more inclusive for children with additional needs and reduce costs for local authorities in the long term. However, an inquiry by MPs found that these plans do not cover significant cost pressures arising from home-to-school transport, on which the government spends multiple billions each year.
Councils will have 90 per cent of their high-needs deficits accrued up to this year written off, and SEND costs will be managed within the overall Government budget from 2028. But the PAC said this leaves councils uncertain about deficits that may arise between now and 2028. The new funding arrangements also exclude home-to-school transport costs, which reached a record high of £2 billion last year for 206,000 children and young people.
The Department for Education (DfE) is highly reliant on the reforms to solve transport problems, as they aim to make local schools more inclusive, reducing the need for long-distance travel. However, the PAC report states that savings are unlikely to materialise quickly and calls for the DfE to set out when it expects savings to begin. MPs also noted that the DfE does not understand how access to transport affects attendance or the difficulties parents face in navigating the system, especially for children over 16.
The committee’s inquiry found declining local bus services, particularly in rural areas, have increased reliance on council-provided transport. MPs suggested that local bus franchising offers an opportunity to replace expensive contracts with lower-cost alternatives. The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government has detailed transport funding but not how it will monitor success.
Cllr Bill Revans, SEND spokesperson for the County Councils Network, said the network estimates councils could spend £3.4 billion on SEND transport by 2030 if nothing changes. He acknowledged the reforms have potential to contain costs but added that county and rural councils face bigger financial pressures due to longer distances, urging the government to provide additional support.
